Service Center Page, Jobs

EU4MD/ International Consultant to provide assistance in the implementation of the SMART Component, including SMART City Concept and Roadmaps for Ungheni and Cahul Municipalities.

Vacancy Number: Pr22/02372

Location:	Chisinau, Moldova
Application Deadline:	27 Jan 2022, 16:00 (GMT+2:00)
Application Extended deadline:	07 Feb 2022, 16:00 (GMT+2:00)
Type of Contract:	Individual Contract
Starting date:	25 Feb 2022
Reference to the project:	EU4Moldova: Focal regions
Expected Duration of Assignment:	February 2022 – June 2023, 100 working days
Submission Instructions: Description of the assignment:       International Consultant to provide assistance in the implementation of the SMART Component, including SMART City Concept and Roadmaps for Ungheni and Cahul Municipalities Project name: EU4Moldova: Focal Regions Programme (EU-funded) Period of assignment/services: February 2022 – June 2023, 100 working days Proposals should be submitted online by pressing the "Apply Now" button no later than 27 January 2022. Requests for clarification only must be sent by standard electronic communication to the following e-mail: victoria.josan@undp.org. UNDP will respond by standard electronic mail and will send written copies of the response, including an explanation of the query without identifying the source of inquiry, to all applicants.
Supporting Documents: Terms of Reference Individual Consultant Procurement Notice OFFEROR’S LETTER TO UNDP CONFIRMING INTEREST AND AVAILABILITY FOR THE INDIVIDUAL CONTRACTOR (IC) ASSIGNMENT UNDP General Conditions of Individual Contract

Background

The EU4Moldova: focal regions Programme (hereinafter the Programme)) is based on the European Commission Implementing Decision on the Annual Action Programme 2018 in favour of the Republic of Moldova and is funded by the European Union and implemented by the United Nations Development Programme.

The overall objective of the five-year Programme is to strengthen the economic, territorial and social cohesion in the Republic of Moldova through smart, green, inclusive, sustainable and integrated local socio-economic growth as well as by improving the standards of living of the citizens in the focal regions of Cahul and Ungheni.

To this end, this Programme will address also the urban-rural divide as well as regional disparities, stimulate economic growth and job creation, refurbish and upgrade some social and technical infrastructure in selected areas (smaller towns and villages) while taking into account climate change and a gender perspective in the activities of the Programme.

Specific objectives:

1. To strengthen transparency, accountability of local public authorities and citizen participation in local governance processes in the focal regions.
2. To improve citizens' access to quality public services and utilities in the focal regions.
3. To create employment opportunities for men and women in the pilot focal regions and improve the attractiveness of the pilot regions for investors and entrepreneurs.
4. To promote the smart specialization of the economy of the focal regions through the development of the clustering and value chain approach in key economic sectors.

The Programme objectives will be achieved through measures targeted at: (i) capacity building to support the implementation and monitoring of local economic development plans; (ii) civil society engagement in local planning, governance processes and basic social service delivery; (iii) provision of investment funding in support of the creation and/or development of social and technical infrastructure which, combined with the outcomes from interventions (i) and (ii) above, will have an immediate, visible and tangible impact on employment creation, the standard of living of the population in the focal regions.

Scope of work

The overall objective of the International Consultant assignment (hereinafter Consultant) is to provide hands-on support for the Programme EU4Moldova: focal regions in the implementation of the SMART Component, including the SMART City Concept and two Roadmaps for Ungheni and Cahul Municipalities and offer feedback to the SMART projects related technical documentation.

Requirements for experience

The following qualification criteria shall be applied for the selection of the Consultant:

Academic Qualifications:

• Master’s Degree (or equivalent) in Architecture, Urban/city planning, Economics, Business Administration, Public Administration, IT/Computer Science, e-Governance, sustainable development or other relevant fields.

Working experience:

• At least 10 years of professional experience in the field of urban and sustainable development, public administration and local development;
• At least 5 years of international experience in the field of development and implementation of SMART City technologies or projects, use of innovation or e-governance transformation in service delivery;
• Recent experience in the elaboration and implementation of at least two urban design projects, urban development plans or strategic plans of the city centers in a participatory manner;
• Experience in the SMART City conceptualization and execution of at least two economic development projects in the field of SMART City;
• Experience in development of at least two action plans, roadmaps or/and strategies for SMART Cities with multidisciplinary groups;
• Recent experience (in the past 2 years) n managing at least one project related to public services improvements, including initiatives designed and implemented at the local public authorities’ level (i.e. SMART Public Transportation, Waste Management, Citizen Engagement Initiatives etc.);
• Experience in the European/East-European countries in the area of assignment will be a strong advantage;
• Experience of work with international organizations/projects, including UN and/or European ones will be an advantage;
• Knowledge of the development context of Moldova will be an asset.

Competencies:

• Experience and management skills in drafting concepts, action plans, roadmaps, strategies, studies, reports, needs assessment, development plans with strong result-based language in the priority spheres of the assignment;
• Knowledge of and ability to transfer international expertise in the priority spheres of the assignment;
• Knowledge and skills of MS Office, including Word, Excel, PowerPoint;
• Excellent language proficiency in both written and oral English;
• Knowledge of Romanian or Russian language will be an asset.

Personal Qualities and other requirements:

• Demonstrated capacity of team-orientation work, excellent planning and organizational skills;
• Good interpersonal skills, solid judgment/decision making, initiative and creativity;
• Ability to analyze, plan, communicate effectively organize and meet expected results;
• Ability to achieve results and deadlines in a timely manner, maintaining a high standard throughout;
• Demonstrated cultural sensitiveness and sound judgment;
• Proven commitment to the core values of the United Nations, in particular, respecting differences of culture, gender, religion, ethnicity, nationality, language, age, HIV status, disability, and sexual orientation, or other status.

The United Nations Development Programme in Moldova is committed to workforce diversity. Women and men, persons with different types of disabilities, LGBT, Roma and other ethnic, linguistic or religious minorities, persons living with HIV, as well as refugees and other non‐citizens legally entitled to work in the Republic of Moldova, are particularly encouraged to apply.

Documents to be included

Interested individuals must submit the following documents/information to demonstrate their qualifications:

1. Proposal explaining how the applicant responds to each of the qualification requirements and why he/she is the most suitable for the work;
2. CV including records on past experience in similar projects/assignments and concrete outputs obtained;
3. Financial proposal - in USD, specifying a total lump sum amount and the number of anticipated working days, incorporated in the Offeror’s Letter to UNDP confirming interest and availability for the Individual Contractor (IC) assignment.

Financial proposal

The financial proposal shall specify a total lump sum amount. The payment for services will be made post factum on a lump-sum deliverables basis, as per contract, after the work has been accepted by the Programme Manager. In order to assist the requesting unit in the comparison of offers, the financial proposal will include a breakdown of this lump sum amount (including fee per day, taxes, travel costs, accommodation costs, communication, and number of anticipated working days etc.).

Travel

This is a home-based assignment with 3 missions (up to 5 days each) to Moldova (Ungheni and Cahul).

Visits to Moldova are to be coordinated prior and approved by the Programme Manager. The International Consultant will be provided with a workspace in Programme’s office. In-country transportation, logistics and interpretation (if needed) will be provided by the Programme and, therefore, shall not be included in the consolidated financial offer. The International Consultant has to cover on its own the airfare and accommodation during assignments in Moldova and, thus, shall be included in the consolidated financial offer.

In general, UNDP should not accept travel costs exceeding those of an economy class ticket. Should the Consultant wish to travel on a higher class he/she should do so using their own resources.

In the case of unforeseeable travel, payment of travel costs including tickets, lodging and terminal expenses should be agreed upon, between the respective business unit and Individual Consultant, prior to travel and will be reimbursed.

Individual contractor who is over 62 years of age will be required, prior to contract signature, to undergo full medical examination and obtain medical clearance from an UN-approved doctor or his/her own preferred physician. The medical examination shall be issued and submitted to UNDP Moldova upon request.